The present invention related to novel pharmaceutical composition for treatment and prevention of influenza caused by viruses and increase immune function, processed for the production of these pharmaceutical compositions and the use thereof The bifunctional pharmaceutical composition is nontoxic.
Specifically, this invention provides a new safe pharmaceutical composition of pure Banlangensu, which is extracted from among Isatis tinctoria L, I. Indigotica Fort or Baphicacanthus cusia Bremek.
The major antiviral drugs can inhibit viral replication but also inhibit some host cell function and possess serious toxicity. For example, amantadine, idoxuridine, cytarabine, vidarabine are major antiviral drugs using in clinic now. Amantadine can inhibit myxoviruses, e.g., influenza A, rubella. The most marked toxic effects of amantadine are central nervous system sign, insomnia, slurred speech, dizziness and ataxia. Idoxuridine can inhibit the replication of herpes simplex virus n the cornea, however DNA synthesis of host cells is also inhibited. Cytarabine can inhibit DNA synthesis and interferes with replication of DNA viruses. But cytarabine also inhibits immune function in human. By weight it is about 10 times more effective than idoxuridine, and it is also 10 times more toxic for host cell. Vidarabine can inhibit herpesvirus, but it is also produce more marked adverse gastrointestinal or neurological side effects.
Influenza (flu) is a serious of illnesses and it kills more than 20 million of people worldwide in history. The proportion of deaths attributed to influenza reported by 122 cities exceeded the epidemic threshold for 22 consecutive weeks, beginning the week ending Nov. 27, 1999, through the week ending Apr. 22, 2000 in the U.S. Influenza is responsible for approximately 20,000 deaths and 110,000 hospitalizations annually in the U.S.
The most effective way to reduce the impact of influenza is to vaccinate people at high risk for complications shortly before the influenza season each year. But influenza viruses have many different strains.
Vaccine production takes six months, so timely recognition of emerging variants is a key to preventing influenza pandemic. However, after madding vaccine, the new influenza virus strain may be produced again.
Influenza viruses are classified as types A, B, and C. The forms are further identified on the basis of a protein called hemagglutinin, which protrudes from the viral surface. It is the main target for vaccine design because of its role in attaching the virus to cell receptors and inducing neutralizing antibodies. Influenza viruses have many viral surfaces. It causes very difficult to make vaccine on time for prevention of influenza viruses.
As mentioned above, all anti-flu drugs have more side effects. According to FDA report (Nov. 6, 2000), more serious problems are that several anti-flu drugs, which contained phenylpropanolamine (PPA), will cause stroke. Patients, who used drug contained PPA, have 1600% (sixteen times) incidence of stroke than normal people. Therefore, some anti-flu drugs have very high side effects.
Viruses are obligate intracellular parasites. Their replication depends on metabolic processes of the host cell. Therefore, major antiviral drugs that inhibit viral replication also inhibit some host cell functions and possess serious toxicity.
The common cold, for example, is caused by a great variety of different viruses. That is why the same person may have so many different attacks, and why the symptoms may be a bit different from one attack to another.
So much more, the immune function normally protects human being from infections caused by viruses. The results of research indicated that viral infection tends to cause disease only in individual whose immune function has been severely weakened. Individual with health immune function could control virus without the serious effects that occur with the disease. For reasons given above, a new pharmaceutical composition, which has bifunction-inhibiting viruses and increasing immune function, is very important for treatment and prevention of influenza viruses caused by virus. Pure Banlangensu (PBLG) just has above bifunction.
In short, PBLG can inhibit viruses and increase immune function and it is safety.